IN-BOX; Curse or Legacy? Calling Coogan's Bluff

Published: October 11, 2009

To the Sports Editor:

Re ''The Spirits of Coogan's Bluff Haunt the Mets,'' Oct. 4: If Dave Anderson were able to arrange a meeting with the ghosts of the Polo Grounds, I would happily try to convince them that the current Manhattan borough president has banished the curse attributed to one of his predecessors, James J. Coogan.

A mind-boggling run of injuries and a steady diet of gaffes in the field and on the basepaths have been more than enough for Mets fans to deal with this season. Let's spare them the Curse of Coogan's Bluff.

Scott M. Stringer

New York

The writer is the Manhattan borough president.

To the Sports Editor:

As an old Brooklyn fan who has transferred his allegiance to the Mets, I can say that they are the true heirs to the Dodgers' luck. Although Bobby Thomson's home run was bad, it has to be placed in perspective.

In 1951, the Giants caught the Dodgers after trailing by 13 1/2 games in August. The year before, the Dodgers lost the pennant on a home run in the last inning of the regular season. In 1956, the Yankees beat the Dodgers in the World Series, with Larsen's no-hitter thrown in for further indignity.

When Citi Field opened this year with all of the Dodger legends ensconced within, Dodger ''luck'' simply took the team's best players off the field as the season unfolded.

Mel Zipes

Poughkeepsie, N.Y.

PHOTO: Bobby Thomson's three-run, pennant-winning homer for the Giants crushed the Dodgers at the Polo Grounds in 1951. (PHOTOGRAPH BY ASSOCIATED PRESS)